Christy Clark announces measures to improve B.C. justice system

Jonathan Fowlie, Vancouver Sun02.09.2012

Saying she is frustrated with growing delays in B.C.’s courts, Premier Christy Clark on Wednesday launched a five-month review to determine how her government can make the justice system more efficient.Nick Procaylo
/ PNG

Premier Christy Clark on Wednesday launched a five-month review to determine how her government can make the justice system more efficient.Mark van Manen
/ Vancouver Sun

Premier Christy Clark and Attorney General and Soliciter General Shirley Bond announce that Geoffrey Cowper has been appointed chair of a review of the justice system, In Vancouver on Wednesday, February 8, 2012.Glenn Baglo
/ PNG

Christy Clark merged the ministries of Attorney General and Solicitor General into a new Justice MinistryLyle Stafford
/ timescolonist.com

VICTORIA — Saying she is frustrated with growing delays in B.C.’s courts, Premier Christy Clark on Wednesday launched a five-month review to determine how her government can make the justice system more efficient.

“I share the frustration that every British Columbian feels when we see delays and when we see stays in the system,” she said. “It’s not right, it’s not working and I’m really frustrated.”

Clark did not commit any new funding as part of Wednesday’s announcement, saying the problem is too complex to be solved with just money.

“What we’ve discovered is just adding more money is not making the problem better. We’re actually seeing the problem get worse,” she said. “We have to give this a really deep look and understand why the problem seems to be getting worse despite the fact that we’ve been continuing to put in more money.”

Clark announced she has asked Vancouver lawyer Geoffrey Cowper, who served as counsel to the Frank Paul inquiry, to consult the legal community and determine a set of recommendations by July.

Gary McCuaig, Alberta’s former chief Crown prosecutor, will review B.C.’s charge assessment process to determine if it is the most effective model for deciding on prosecutions.

Cowper will have a maximum $125,000 to spend on his review, while McCuaig will have $70,000 to spend on his.

Clark’s announcement comes after months of intense criticism from judges, the Opposition and members of the public that her government has not been doing enough to clear the backlog in B.C. courts.

The province’s three chief judges welcomed the review Wednesday, but warned that any reforms “must respect the constitutional framework in which we operate.

“We always welcome the opportunity to engage in dialogue with Government and other justice system participants on the issues and challenges facing the justice system,” said a statement released by the courts and attributed to the three top justices.

“Such a review, however, must recognize that the various participants in the justice system operate within a constitutional framework. That framework places certain responsibilities on the participants and is founded on an independent judiciary,” it added.

On Wednesday, Cowper called his task “a privilege and a daunting challenge,” adding the most onerous element of his review will be balancing that independence within the legal system with a need for reform.

“It’s not just judges that are independent, virtually everyone is independent,” he said.

“The prosecutors are independent, the police are independent, the judges are independent -- they’re all independent for a good reason -- but it makes it very difficult to negotiate change,” he added.

B.C. Crown Counsel Association president Samiran Lakshman said he is open to a discussion about how the system can become more efficient.

“But the reality we can’t escape is that we still have 2,500 cases over 18 months old [the point at which charges could be stayed], and another 5,000 cases as of five months ago that were between 12 and 18 months old,” he added. “So we have another wave of cases that we have to get at immediately. We can’t wait and time is of the essence.”

Sharon Matthews, president of the Canadian Bar Association -- B.C. branch, called for more funding for legal aid, Crown Counsel and court staffing.

“Immediate funding is needed to clear the court backlogs, which have been created by past underfunding,” she said in a written statement. “The best reforms in the world, implemented months from now, cannot fix today’s legal crisis and will not be effective until the backlogs are cleared.”

Clark’s political opponents were quick to dismiss her announcement, with both NDP leader Adrian Dix and John Martin, the B.C. Conservative candidate in the upcoming Chilliwack-Hope byelection, calling for more immediate action.

Clark’s announced review follows the release of two reports based on a months-long probe of the justice system.

“While significant progress has been made within the justice system in recent years, problems of cost and delay are appearing to a degree which is increasingly unacceptable,” said one of the reports, a green paper meant to serve as a launching point for the new review.

“Action is required due to the reliance of British Columbians, their families and our economy on a sound system of justice.”

Another report found significant issues with a lack of coordination between the Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor-general and the Ministry of Attorney-General, which were combined Wednesday into a new Ministry of Justice.

Shirley Bond, who had already been doing the two roles, now becomes the province’s Minister of Justice and Attorney-General.

The audit also blamed the lack of understanding of what is happening in the justice system on an absence of proper tracking.

“While crime severity and crime rates have decreased over the last several years, it is unclear why the number of cases and pressures on the justice system has continued to increase,” the audit stated. “The lack of a suitable performance management framework makes it impossible to clearly understand the underlying causes.”

jfowlie@vancouversun.com

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